Tri-Town Ambulance Service Gets Even More Complicated
Captain Allain Says He Will No Longer Pursue The Proposal
by Doug La Rocque
When it was time for the departmental reports at the Monday, January 11 Grafton Town Board meeting, Rescue Squad Captain Joe Allain handed each of the Board members a letter in which he stated he no longer intended to pursue the idea of a paid ambulance service covering the towns of Grafton, Berlin and Petersburgh. If the towns really want it, they will have to come to him. “When you are ready to take care of the public, let me know.” Those were his words to the Board, as he spoke of his frustration trying to lift the idea off the ground for two years. He also said he was tired of people who have questions not coming to him for answers.
He talked in particular about Petersburgh Council member Heinz Noeding’s recent comments at a Petersburgh board meeting, stating he was uncomfortable with the proposed contract, citing the fact Grafton’s paid service would only offer mutual aid to the town. In an interview with The Eastwick Press, Captain Allain stated that was really a legal technicality, because the Grafton Rescue Squad holds the Certificate of Need (CON) for the towns of Grafton and Berlin, but not Petersburgh. That CON is held by the Petersburgh Ambulance Corp, which while still active, faces the same problem as all county rural volunteer squads face, the inability to gather a daytime crew to respond to calls. Mr. Allain said the plan was for both Grafton and Petersburgh to be dispatched simultaneously to any daytime calls in Petersburgh, and if the Petersburgh Ambulance was unable to respond, Grafton would already be enroute. He further stated that if Petersburgh were able to respond, they would take the call and bill, the Grafton Rescue Squad would simply return to quarters, unless requested to assist. He also defended his proposed budget for 2021, which totals $198,783, $102,000 of which would be for staffing, but that is a figure that does not include required insurances and benefits. He also stated that $20,000 of the total figure, would be used for a reserve account, which would be built up over the years to purchase a new ambulance when required.
A Big Loss
Mr. Allain, Grafton Town Supervisor Ingrid Gundrum and Berlin Supervisor Rob Jaeger have also spoken many times in 2020 about a shared services proposal, that would see 75% of each town’s cost, reimbursed under a Rensselaer County shared Services Plan. According to Captain Allain, the fact the paid service was not operational by January 1, means all three towns have missed out on the money, and would now have to pay the whole cost.
After the meeting, Supervisor Gundrum said she is optimistic the proposal is not dead, and sent the following statement: “I respect that Captain Allain is coming from a place of deep frustration with the length of time and the hoops that we have all had to jump through to get this going. And his frustration is compounded by the fact that he and all First Responders are stretched thin. All I can do is encourage him not to throw in the towel – the project is very much alive and I anticipate signing the contract along with Dennis and Rob (Supervisors Smith and Jaeger) of Petersburgh and Berlin within the next few weeks. The Tri-Town Ambulance Project is the cornerstone of the County Shared Services Plan, and I’m confident that our Town Board won’t allow Grafton to get a black eye for backing out of that and costing us reimbursement of 75% of our start-up costs from the State.”
Holding a Referendum,
New Attorney Says “Not So Fast”
At Grafton’s December Board meeting, Council member Steve Beaudry suggested the town hold a public referendum on the idea. He has repeatedly stated he is not against a Tri-Town Ambulance Service, but feels town residents should have the opportunity to express their views, particularly on a $59,226 expenditure (the 2021 budget breaks that down as $15,000 without a Tri-Town service, and an additional $44,226 if the Tri-Town service comes to fruition). The Board at that time voted 5-0 to approve. Mr. Allain asked the Board why they are not asking the public about the $42,500 budget for the Grafton Community Library, and wanting to hold a referendum on that. He made it very clear he is not opposed to the library funding, but thought money to be used for providing emergency medical services, and possibly even saving lives, should be a priority.
As to that referendum vote, supervisor Gundrum tells The Eastwick Press, “I voted yes for that simply in the spirit of what was being proposed – that the public’s voice should be heard, but bear in mind that for the years that we’ve been working on this, the public has had numerous opportunities to voice their opinions at monthly meetings or by direct contact with their town boards or the Grafton Rescue Squad. That said, I know that the public referendum is not some thing that our town board is capable of calling for, we lack the authority to do that and we would be found to have acted improperly, potentially putting the town at risk for legal consequences. It is good that this was explained to the Town Board by Town Attorney Phil Danaher at our Monday night meeting.”
Mr. Danaher did suggest the Board could hold a public hearing to receive feedback from residents about the idea. He also asked the proposed contract between the Grafton Rescue Squad and the three towns be forwarded to him for review, so perhaps he could help resolve some of the questions and concerns put forward by members of the Grafton and Petersburgh boards. It should be noted the Berlin Town Board has already unanimously given its approval.
Daytime Problems Persist
During his report, Captain Allain indicated the squad had 24 calls in December, and missed 10 of them. The majority of those times, he said he was not able to respond, having been in quarantine. The vast number of these missed calls happened between 6 am and 6 pm, the time when a paid crew would be on duty, Monday through Friday.
Some relief for Grafton may be on the way. Berlin Supervisor Rob Jaeger has told The Eastwick Press, the ambulance Berlin purchased and is currently housed in the town municipal complex garage, is set to go, and just waiting for New York State Department of Health approval. That he hopes to see within the next few weeks. Once that ambulance is certified, there are at least two EMTs and a driver ready to respond to calls in the town when available. That would mean the Grafton Rescue Squad would not always have to travel to Berlin when there is an EMS call, and also increase response times. The Berlin Fire Department closed its ambulance service over a year ago, and surrendered its CON, which the Grafton Rescue Squad picked up last June.
Zooming Meetings
Grafton is one of the few town boards in the area still meeting in person. Its meetings have been moved to the Everett Wagar Senior Center where there is a larger room where attendees and the board can social distance. Council member Frank Lewandusky has been taping the meetings and later putting them on his Facebook page. And while attorney Danaher says this is a nice service he is providing, it does not constitute a legal recording. The Board could Zoom its meetings, but some members of the board said they preferred to meet in person. Mr. Danaher says there is a way to either Zoom or Facebook live the meetings for the public, while members of the board who wish to attend may still do so. He said he will work with Town Clerk Vicky Burdick to see if it would be possible. Internet coverage at the Senior Center may be an issue.
There Is More
Many other topics were discussed at the meeting, unfortunately space this week does not permit any further reporting. The rest of the Grafton Town Board report will appear in next week’s edition.